Happy Halloween!

I feel like I haven't updated the blog in a while and now that I have cute costume pics of Emma I'm motivated to sit down and type a post. :) So, where do I begin?

Last Saturday, Kev, Emma, and I headed to Wichita for the imminent birth of our new neice! Turns out, birth wasn't so imminent. Kev and Emma headed home on Sunday but I stayed until Thursday, knowing, that baby girl would come any second. Alas, I still am not an aunt. I am fairly confident that will change in the next day or so. Please, please pray for Mae and Ian that they have a healthy baby girl and that Mae can find strength and comfort in labor. Ian and Mae are going to be great parents. (And I will be a fabulous aunt!)

Emma is becoming a pro at walking. She is everywhere! It is so amazing to see her toddling around the house. She's also starting to talk a lot. She sounds like she is speaking full sentences- in another language. She is so sweet to us and loves to cuddle and give kisses. The other night I asked her if she would rub my belly and she did so and then laid her head on it like a pillow. I'm taking this as a sign that her and Hannah will be best friends and get along all the time ;)

Trick-or-Treating last night was alot of fun. Emma really enjoyed walking up driveways and waving to the people answering the door. The first house we went to Emma smiled really big and waved and really won the lady over. She put like 3 handfulls of candy in Emma's pumpkin! The best part is that there are very few candies Emma can have a bite of which means Mommy and Daddy get the rest. Sweet! By the end of the night, she was pretty exhauseted and all Treated-out. She passed out and slept until 9AM this morning which I think is a record.

We're just hanging out at home today and enjoying some time together. Emma is napping right now and Kevin is going through some paperwork. We hope all of you had a great Halloween and are enjoying your weekend!

Her name shall be...

In my family, it's sort of a tradition that Dad picks the name for the kids. My siblings and I were all named by our dad, my mom and all her siblings by their dad. As many of you know, Kevin chose Emma's name (and a great selection it was!). We thought there's no reason for this baby to be any different so he has been compiling a list of names for our new daughter.

We had been toying with the idea of the name ending with the "uh" sound, like Emma. We also have been fairly certain that the middle name would be the same as my mom's, who passed away in December of '06.

After much deliberation, a decision has been made. Our new daughter's name will be........

Hannah Sue Costello

I don't know why it is so comforting to have her name chosen; maybe because it helps her feel more real and like she's here with us already. Whatever the reason, I am excited to begin calling her Hannah when I'm rubbing my belly instead of "baby girl".

In other baby news, Kevin's sister Mae is getting very close to having her baby. Her actual due date isn't for another 5 weeks or so but it seems she will probably make her debut a bit sooner. We can't wait to hold her and give her kissies. Please keep Mae and Ian in your prayers that the rest of the pregnancy goes well and that the baby doesn't feel too rushed make an entrance ;)

Busy Weekend

It has been a very busy but fun weekend. Saturday we got up early and met our friends Dave and Kellie for breakfast. They have 2 beautiful children, Ashlyn and Carter. We then all went to Celbration City. Emma took her first ride on a Merry Go Round and absolutely loved it. She kept saying, "ooooh, oooohhh!"

Later in the day I got a Drumstick ice cream cone (my favorite.) Kevin was holding it out for Emma to take some licks when she reached out and took it! It was so cute because she was sticking her whole face in it. I think she was surprized by how cold it was because after taking a bite she would shudder a little bit and make a funny face.

After that wholesome nutrition she had her first few bites of cotton candy, too. It was not a good day in Mommyville but I figured, "Hey, that's what amusement parks are for, right?"

We left the park around 2:30 and went home to change for a wedding. Kevin had to head in to work so he wasn't able to come with us. One of the nurses I work with was getting married and the ceremony was absolutely beautiful. Emma did pretty good with only a few outbursts. It's asking a lot of a one year old to sit quitely in a pew for 90 minutes so I was really happy with the way things went.

After the wedding, we stopped by my friend Christen's house to wish her a happy birthday. We finally got home around 8 and Emma was pooped.

This morning we went to Sunday School and church and have just relaxed the rest of the afternoon. I'm pretty sleepy and will probably turn in early tonight. Ugh, it's back to work tomorrow. I hope everyone had a great weekend and has a great week!

Happy Birthday to my Big Girl!

Last Friday my sweet Emma turned 1! I can not believe how quickly time has passed and how much our lives have changed. She is the greatest blessing given to me and I'm so thankful for this awesome privellege to be her Mommy :) We celebrated in Wichita with Kevin' family and had a wonderful time. Her Grammy and all her aunts and uncles love her very much and spoiled her proper. She got some cute outfits, shoes, and fun toys. She LOVED her birthday cake and did her best to eat every crumb. It is so cool to see the bond she has with family; I think that even babies have the instinct to sense those they are safe with, that love them and are familiar. She loves her family and they love her; for that I am thankful.

We also celebrated the upcoming birth of Kevin's sister's baby. Mae is due the first week of November with a sweet baby girl and we can't wait to meet her. Unfortunately, the Mommy and Daddy will not share the name with us but they're playing a little game that allows us to guess. Given the current clues, I am guessing the baby's name is Abba Babba. :)

Mae looks glowing and beautiful and the pregnancy is going as it should. The family will be traveling to Wichita for Thanksgiving to meet the sweet girl and give her lots of kissies.

In other "baby" news, the physician I work with adopting from China has returned home safely with their new daughter. They have all bonded and are adjusting tremendously well. She is a beautiful and sweet 6 year old girl and we are so thankful to God for making them a forever family.

And...yes, there's another 'and', our friends Brad and Missy have their sweet boy from Vietnam. They are hoping to return to the States on Friday. Trust me when I say he is so gorgeous. I can't wait for them to bring him to church so we can all "ooh" and "aww" over him. Please pray that God continue to bless them on this journey as they finalize paperwork and travel home safely.

I think that's enough for now. Hope all is well with each of you!

Toto, I think we're back in Kansas

We are headed to Wichita, KS today to visit with Kev's family and do some celebrating. First, it is Emma's 1st birthday and 2nd, we're having a baby shower for Kev's sister Mae. It will be so nice to get away for 5 days and re-connect with everyone. I'm also pretty stoked to add another state to my list of places visited (I've never been to Kansas.)

Please pray for safe travels for all of Kevin's siblings (we're blessed to have the shortest commute). I'll definately have lots of fun pics to post when we get back!

Good Morning Vietnam!

We are so excited to report that some friends of ours from church have received approval to travel to Vietnam and adopt their son. The wait has seemed like forever but the time has finally come. We are so thankful to God, for bringing Brad and Missy to this point and can not wait to see the things he has in store for their family. Congratulations, guys! We will still be praying for the three of you and can't wait to see that sweet boy in your arms!

Drum roll please..........

It's a Girl!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Emma will have a baby sister. Everything looked good today. Baby is growing as she should be. I'll try to post an ultrasound pic tomorrow after I scan it.

Celebration and anticipation

This weekend was very exciting because Kevin's sister, Genevieve, came to visit us in Springfield. It was an extra exciting visit because it was her first time meeting Emma! Gen is a surgical PA and lives in Miami Beach. I know, we're jealous too. She stays pretty busy but we're so thankful she was able to come to town for Labor Day weekend and spend some quality time. Emma loves her aunt Gen; I think she knew right away that she was family and loved her instantly. We're hoping to take a trip to visit her next summer.

We also have much anticipation tonight because we are getting our first ultrasound tomorrow! I can't wait to see our baby's little face and find out if Emma is going to have a baby sister or baby brother. My appointment is at 2pm tomorrow and I will be counting down the hours. I pray that our baby is healthy and growing well. Time is moving so much quicker this time; I feel like we waited for an eternity to have our ultrasound with Emma. Now, it's almost alarming how quickly the days are going by.

I will be sure to post the big announcement tomorrow evening. Stay tuned! (by the way, please say a prayer that we're not having twins!)

Celebration

My office at work was doing a great bit of celebrating today. One of our physicians received final travel approval today to travel to China and adopt their daughter. He and his wife have previously adopted two beautiful daughters, who will be entering 3rd and 4th grade this year. Their new daughter is 6 years old and will meet her new parents sometime after the first week of September.

We can not wait to meet her once they come home. Please keep their family in your prayers as they prepare travel arrangements and secure their visas (mom, dad and both girls will be traveling to meet their new addition.)

Moving right along

I went to the doctor today for a check up and everything is progressing well. I'm feeling good and the heartbeat sounded wonderful. I'm really excited because I go back 3 weeks from today for my ultrasound! It has really snuck up on us. Kevin is predicting we're having a boy and I think I'm leaning towards a girl. We'll see who's right.

Enjoy the picture above. Emma loves those little rectangle wafer cookies. You know, they're made of 3 or 4 layers with creme in the middle? Anyway, she just devoured a chocolate one and was feeling quite satisfied.

A Special Surprize

This darling little onesie was waiting for me when I picked Emma up from daycare today. Every year, the class make "Friendship Shirts" for all the kids. They are so good at making little crafts, even with the babies. The made us a cute hand-print gift for Mother's Day and a foot-print for Father's Day. Emma's foot is in the middle and all the other little "dots" are the toe or fingerprint of her classmates. Isn't it sweet. I love having these little keepsakes that I will always be able to pull out in the future to remember how little she once was.

Where have we been?!

Someone politely pointed out to me that I have not made any posts about Emma in quite some time. My appologies. Let me bring you up to speed. First of all, she is growing and changing so much every day. I look at pictures of her from just a month ago and I can see such a difference. Her hair is really starting to thicken and grow; I can not wait until I can put little bows and pony tails in it!

Milestone wise, she is really taking off. Her crawling has become much more sophisticated and much quicker. She is all over the house and we are chasing her constantly. One of her favorite targets is the cat dish. A few times we have been too slow and she's nabbed a piece. Luckily we get her before she starts chewing it up. I caught her in the act the other day and have photographic evidence. Also, please note her There's Something About Mary hair- nice.

She also is starting to talk! She says mama, dada, daddy, hi, and kitty. Kitty was actually her 1st word. We thought it was a fluke but she still says it.

We're trying to teach her some body parts. For the last 3 weeks, we've asked Emma where her belly is. We ask her every day and every day we point to her belly button and say, "There it is!" Well, this week, she finally got it! She pats her chest area a little more than her belly area, but still, she gets it! It's so cool to see that we've really taught her something. Now I'm working on toes.

She is also beginning to try and pull up on furniture. She's standing really well if we stand her up. She hasn't quite been able to pull herself all the way up but she gets to her knees and is trying really hard so it's just a matter of time.

All in all, she's still our sweet girl. I can't believe she'll be a year old in about 6 weeks. It sounds cliche, but time has flown by so fast. It makes me a little sad to think she's creeping out of being a baby.

I'll post more pics again soon. Hope all is well with all of you. All our love!

February 4th

That is the tenative date that Emma will become a big sister. Yup, that's right, we're doing it again. We are so pleased to announce that we are 12 weeks pregnant with our second baby.

We started this blog toward the end of my pregnancy with Emma to keep everyone updated. We'll continue to post about sweet baby girl and also keep you informed of our pregnancy.

I'm healthy and baby is growing well. We should be able to have an ultrasound in September to find out if Emma will have a baby sister or baby brother. We covet your prayers and support. Thank you all for your love and friendship
Love, Kevin and Mandy

Yay

I just had to make a quick post.....


Kevin passed his NCLEX exam! He's officially an RN! I am so proud of him and so happy for him!

Trying to Settle

Sorry we've been MIA for a bit. Things have been a little chaotic the last few weeks around our household. We moved out of our house into our apartment on July 2nd. We were supposed to close on the house tomorrow but there's been a delay so it looks like it will be next Friday.

We've been in the apartment a week but I still feel really upheaved. There are still boxes and random piles of stuff laying everywhere. We've discovered that we had a lot of useless crap laying around our house that we don't have room for in the apartment. We've only been married right at two years but we've really accumulated a lot of stuff!

We're trying to sort through and decide what has to stay, what can be stored and what we want to get rid of (there's a lot of things in that last category.)

Even with all the craziness, though, we are so happy to be moved. Our complex is quiet and peaceful. God has so richly blessed us, bringing all of this into reality. We, and alot of our family, prayed about moving for a long time. We first talked to a realtor in February. We then waited and prayed asking God to show us if this was the right decision for us. On the one hand, the economy isn't good for selling homes. It's great for buying a home but we knew we weren't in a position to buy right away. On the other hand, we felt as though we were in a constant state of stress and anxiety with our neighbors. God really placed it on our hearts that it was time to move so we moved forward with our realtor. After only 40 days on the market, an amazing feat, we had a contract on our house. Ahhh. Thank you, God.

So, we're adjusting to different drive times, different amounts of space, and the hassle of not knowing which box anything's in (I'm a sloppy packer), but we are at peace and happy.

Once we get more settled, we'll post some pics of the new pad. Hope all is well with everyone. Love and miss you, Kevin and Mandy